Art of deception: Weaver should be tough on NL stars

July 11, 2011

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

1 of 1

The Angels' Jered Weaver jokes around during a game Friday against the Seattle Mariners. The right-hander's deceptive delivery could prove difficult for NL hitters unfamiliar with him to decipher. KEVIN SULLIVAN, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The Angels' Jered Weaver jokes around during a game Friday against the Seattle Mariners. The right-hander's deceptive delivery could prove difficult for NL hitters unfamiliar with him to decipher. KEVIN SULLIVAN, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

PHOENIX - Jered Weaver – man of mystery?

For National League batters who have rarely (if ever) faced the Angels right-hander, the American League starting pitcher in Tuesday's All-Star Game is indeed an enigma.

But even hitters who have been facing Weaver for parts of his six major-league seasons still find him difficult to get a handle on.

"He has a lot of deception, especially against right-handers," said Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday, one of only four players in the NL's starting lineup who have faced Weaver. (Holliday is 3 for 5 in his career against the Angels right-hander).

Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton leaps to the same word when asked what makes facing Weaver most challenging.

"It all comes back to his deceptiveness," said Hamilton (8 for 27 in his career off Weaver). "He steps across his body and then throws back across his body. It's real tough to pick up the ball."

Hamilton's Rangers (and AL All-Star) teammate Michael Young admits Weaver's deceptive delivery is "a different look" but said "I've got a lot of at-bats off him (67) so there's not as much deception" involved for him.

Hamilton isn't sure he buys that.

"I'll let you know in 10 years, maybe," he said when told of Young's assessment.

Familiarity certainly hasn't bred trouble for the 28-year-old Weaver. He has only gotten better, rising to elite status in the past two years. He made his first All-Star team last year and led the majors in strikeouts. This year, he reached the break with an 11-4 record, major-league low 1.86 ERA and 0.91 WHIP (second in the majors behind Justin Verlander).

"He's one of those guys who combines the fact that you don't pick up the ball well with good stuff – a low '90s fastball, good breaking ball, good changeup and good command," Holliday said.

Young said "stuff-wise, he's pretty similar" to the first-round pick out of Long Beach State who burst onto the major-league scene with a 9-0 run in 2006. Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier agreed that he hasn't much difference in Weaver's pitches over the years. It's his "smarts" that have grown, according to Ethier.

"I don't think his skills have gotten any better," Ethier said. "He has better command. He knows how to control that stuff better.

"But I've seen videos of my at-bats against him and he looks like the same guy as he was four, five years ago. His stuff is maybe a little sharper but he knows how to attack hitters with it. He understands what he needs to do to put you away."

Hitters feast on mistakes and the difference in Weaver, according to Holliday, is the frequency of those mistakes.

"Somebody was asking me about (young Dodgers ace Clayton) Kershaw and it's the same thing," Holliday said. "With young pitchers, they start to make less and less mistakes as they get more experience. And they become more and more difficult to deal with the fewer mistakes they make."

Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp pointed to the same problem for hitters – if they're waiting for Weaver to make a mistake, they might walk away with an 0-fer and still be waiting.

"He's a great pitcher," Kemp said. "He throws strikes and he doesn't make too many mistakes.

"He's gotten better and better every year. Isn't that what you're supposed to do? He knows how to pitch, knows how to keep hitters off balance."

Not just hitters.

"I've watched Jered pitch since he was 15 years old," Weaver's agent, Scott Boras, said. "I was watching the game the other night with Jeff (Jered's older brother and an 11-year major-league veteran) and we were both trying to guess along with what he was going to throw next.

"We were right about 40 percent of the time. So even we don't know where he's going half the time with hitters and we've been watching him for years. What chance do hitters have?"

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.